Computer users often store important information on their computers that may be critical for accomplishing their tasks. Unfortunately, many computer users suffer a loss of important information for many different reasons, including hardware failure, software failure, and simple errors in operating an application. For example, a computer user may make several changes in a document and intend to save the changed document with a new file name. However, the computer user may make a common error by saving the document under the existing file name and fail to save the file as a document with another name, resulting in the original file being overwritten. By creating backups of their files, computer users may, however, recover from such namespace collisions that may occur in saving changed documents. Even then, an existing application that may use a flat namespace may fail to save incremental copies of files as they are backed up.
Although computer users may avoid a loss of important information by creating backups of their data, computer users can be discouraged by the challenges involved in backing up their data on their computers. One challenge is that the burden is typically placed upon computer users to initiate a backup of their data. In order to do so, computer users may be required to specify where their data is to be backed-up. For example, a computer user may choose to back up data either on the same media as the original data is stored, which may create a risk if the media becomes damaged, or a computer user may choose another location which may require a computer user to knowingly attach or connect to that media. If a backup may be made to media that may be attached or connected to a computer, the backup may not later be available if the media is no longer attached or connected. Another challenge is that a computer user may be required to manage multiple versions of the backup or risk overwriting previously backed up data with corrupted or incorrect data, thus unknowingly destroying a valid backup that may be needed. Moreover, if the computer user runs out of space in the backup media, either space may be created by deleting files or another backup media with adequate space may be chosen, further complicating the process. When the backup may need to be used, it may be difficult for the computer user to locate or access the backup media. This can be particularly difficult, if the backup was on local media, for example, requiring the local media to be moved to a new computer.
Given these challenges, computer users may fail to back up their data as often as they should. What is needed is a way for a computer system to automatically backup files without requiring user intervention. Such a system and method should provide a backup copy of each saved file so that a computer user may be able to recover whatever copy of the file may be desired by the user.